Tax-Aware Investment Management Practice

Abstract

The authors examine the tax-aware investment practices of investment managers managing taxable accounts. Their sample of mostly well-experienced CFA charter holders exhibits a high degree of tax awareness in investment practices. Specifically, those managers surveyed adjust clients’ return requirements and expected portfolio returns for taxes. They consider a security’s holding period when making a decision to sell and engage in periodic tax-loss harvesting. Moreover, they consider taxes when making investment selections, allocating assets among different taxable entities and managing multiple managers. In contrast, relatively few managers report portfolio performance on a tax-adjusted basis or present their performance relative to a tax-adjusted benchmark.